Attractions

Magnificent Mile Lights Festival

Chicago’s Magnificent Mile Lights Festival began quite humbly 50 years ago, when Saks Fifth Avenue sold its traditional metal Christmas decorations and strung tiny white Italian lights on the branches of the elm trees in front of the store. This year, Mickey Mouse, as master of ceremonies, will lead the illumination of one million lights along North Michigan Avenue during the 18th annual Magnificent Mile Festival of Lights, scheduled for Saturday, November 21st.

The event will kick off at the Harris Stage in Pioneer Court, 401 North Michigan Avenue, with an exciting schedule of live music from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Simultaneously, a series of special events are planned along North Michigan between Wacker Drive and Oak Street. Try your hand at cake decorating at the Eli’s Cheesecake booth or have your photo taken next to the 9-foot high replica of the John Hancock Tower, made entirely from Legos. And don’t forget to stop by the Culinary Pavilion for demonstrations of some of Chicago’s most festive cuisine! Read More »

From a wide swath of lawn on the east side of Chicago’s Field Museum of Natural History, a giant carved head gazes out toward Lake Michigan. More than seven feet tall, Olmec Head #8 is a replica of one of the many amazing stone carvings done by the Olmec people more than 3500 years ago in what are now the states of Tabasco and Veracruz in Mexico.

Olmec Head #8

The Olmec civilization has perplexed scholars since evidence of its existence was discovered in the nineteenth century. With no written language to decipher, only their mysterious carvings remain to tell us Read More »

At $10, $15, or more – adult admission to the Shedd Aquarium in nearly $25! –  visiting several of Chicago’s great museums can really take a toll on your budget. If you plan on going to more than one during your stay in the Windy City, it makes financial sense to look into one of the city’s multi-attraction passes. There are two options.

Field Museum

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There is no shortage of ways to get “high” in Chicago. We’ve got two of the tallest buildings in the US, both offering sweeping views of the city from their observation decks, and the Navy Pier ferris wheel towers over Lake Michigan and its beaches, hoisting riders several stories up. Now there’s one more way to get some air in Chicago. Navy Pier just opened a new balloon attraction called the AeroBalloon, which will lift passengers 350 feet above the city.

AeroBalloon

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Marina Towers on the shores of the Chicago River in the Loop

Few things define Chicago better than the unique American form of architecture known as the skyscraper. The term was first used to describe buildings when the ten-story steel-framed Home Insurance Building was constructed in Chicago in 1885. Although today a ten story building would hardly be considered a high-rise, back then it was unheard of, and its construction forever marked the city as birthplace of the skyscraper. Over the ensuing years, many of the technologies and designs necessary to build the world’s tallest towers were pioneered in Chicago, providing the city with a spectacular skyline and a reputation for cutting edge architecture that draws visitors from around the globe.

Front and center in the effort to showcase the city’s beautiful tall buildings, the Chicago Architecture Foundation offers more than 85 boat, bus, bike, walking, and Segway tours conducted by more than 450 docents – extensively trained volunteer guides certified to lead architecture tours. One of the most respected volunteer groups in the world, docents receive hundreds of hours of training about Chicago architecture and its history.

Walking, biking, and Segway tours have themes like: “”Historic Downtown – Rise of the Skyscraper,” “Downtown Deco,” “Millennium Park Revealed,” “The Magnificent Mile,” and “Tiffany Treasures in Chicago.” CAF’s series of lunchtime tours provide a detailed look at the interiors and exteriors of 16 historic high rises, including such notable structures as the John Hancock building, Willis Tower Read More »

Lights dimmed. Music filled the auditorium. The sold out auditorium was silent in expectation. Suddenly, exploding stars, colliding solar systems, and giant meteors raced across the domed ceiling of the Definiti Space Theater at the Adler Planetarium. Cosmic Collisions, narrated by Robert Redford in his liquid, sexy voice, takes visitors on a trip through space and time to explore the continuing evolution of the Universe, focusing on the continual explosions occurring throughout the galaxy.

Adler Planetarium, part of Chicago's lakefront Museum Campus

Cosmic Collisions is just one of numerous special programs offered at the Planetarium. In the upper level Sky Theater, the wonders of the night sky are projected on the dome of Adler’s historic Zeiss planetarium theater, providing visitors with a deeper look at the diverse objects that make up our universe. The Universe Theater celebrates Read More »

At first, the John G. Shedd Aquarium was just as I remembered it from childhood visits. Divers still hand-feed reef fish, rays, and sharks that circle endlessly in the 90,000-gallon circular Caribbean Reef aquarium in the main hall. Galleries jut from the tank like spokes of a wheel, each exhibiting an array of sea creatures from lake, riverine, and ocean environments. It was comforting to think that nothing much had changed, but also slightly disturbing because, like visiting a house where you grew up, what had once seemed huge now seemed so small. There must be more to this place, I mused.

John G. Shedd Aquarium in Grant Park, part of Chicago's downtown Museum Campus

Finally locating a map, I discovered a huge portion of the facility that I had overlooked. Down a short fight of steps I discovered the Polar Play Zone. Billed as a place that kids can call their own, this subterranean exhibit features penguins, beluga whales, and an ever popular touch pool. Rockhopper penguins, with their glowing red eyes and egg-yolk yellow eyebrows that swoosh upward into long yellow plumes, are always a hit, as much for their unique appearance as for their antics. They are the only penguins that enter the water feet first, then burst back out and grab onto any perch they can with their beak, flippers, or feet. After watching the penguins in their glass case, kids are invited to don a penguin suit and slide down rock chutes that mimic an arctic environment.

Divers feed fish, rays, and shark that circle in the huge circular Caribbean reef tank

At the opposite end of the Polar Play Zone I climbed back up to the main level, where I discovered the Oceanarium, an enormous pool where trainers conduct interactive shows with marine mammals. On one side of the pool semicircular concrete steps create amphitheater seating, while floor-to-ceiling windows on the far side provide breathtaking views of Lake Michigan. This was definitely not part of the facility when I was a child. Indeed, I later discovered that the Oceanarium opened in 1991 and Read More »

Corn is king in Illinois and nowhere is this more evident that in the small farming community of Morris during the annual Grundy County Corn Festival. Every September for the past 60 years, the city has been celebrating their bounteous harvest with a celebration that includes everything from an antique tractor and farm machinery show to a crackerbox derby. The week-long festivities also include photo and art shows, kiddie water fights, hobby and handicraft shows, farm fairs, fireworks, queen and court coronations, baby shows, and an extensive schedule of live music performances that this year includes Bucky Covington of American Idol fame.

Thousands line the parade route during the Grundy County Corn Festival

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On Saturday and Wednesday mornings in the summer, Chicago’s Lincoln Park is transformed into a fresh farmers market that will rival any food market in Europe. In the early hours of morning, before the sun has even thought about rising, farmers, bakers and artisanal food producers arrive and set up their stands. By 7 a.m., the Green City Market is in full swing. Over 50 vendors sell fruit, veggies, herbs and flowers straight from the farm, fresh-baked bread and pastries, organic meats, eggs and milk, and artisanal cheese, honey, and sauces.

Fresh Fruit at the Green City Market

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Chicago Water Tower, constructed of weathered Joliet Limestone, is one of very few buildings that survived the Great Chicago Fire of 1871.

At first sight, the historic Chicago Water Tower seems strangely familiar to many people. Although this vague, unsettling feeling of having “been here before” could be deja vu, it probably has more to do with the design of White Castle restaurants, which are said to have been modeled after the Water Tower, right down to the crenelated tower at one corner.

The structure does tend to live in our psyche. Legend has long held that the Water Tower was the only building to survive the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. In truth, it was the only public building to survive; a few other buildings escaped the flames, although the Water Tower is the only one still standing today. The 154-foot tower was originally constructed for the purpose of holding a water supply at a height sufficient to pressurize the city’s water distribution system. Inside, a 138-foot high standpipe held water that could be regulated to control water surges in the area or used to fight fires. The standpipe was removed in 1911 when it became functionally obsolete, however the spiral staircase that encircled it is still used to reach the tower cupola and the pumping station still pumps water for the city.

The Chicago Water Tower currently houses “Here’s Chicago,” a multi-media show about the city, as well as an official city Visitor’s Center, where the friendly staff will gladly tell the famous story about Mrs. O’Leary’s Cow kicking over a lantern and starting the Great Fire that burned a large portion of the city to the ground. Today the landmark stands as a symbol of resilient Chicagoans who rebuilt their city from ashes.

Article and photo by Barbara Weibel at Hole In The Donut Travels